Transportation Minister Todd Stone is not an easy guy to get a hold of, which would explain my disproportionate excitement when word came this week that the minister was holding a Twitter town hall.
I've had many questions for Mr. Stone – most of them to do with the eventual (and apparently inevitable) referendum on Lower Mainland transit funding.
As the town hall began, my first question was why a referendum at all? Why does spending public money on transit infrastructure require a referendum when none is required for various multimillion-dollar and even multibillion-dollar road and bridge projects?
Mr. Stone offered no answer during the hour-long town hall. Later, I discovered a commentary he wrote for the Georgia Straight earlier this year with the promising title "Why we need a transit referendum." In the piece, the minister explains, "If the people of Metro Vancouver are being asked to pay new taxes or fees, on top of those that local governments and TransLink already collect, then taxpayers must have a say."
That sounds like an answer, but it still doesn't explain why financing transit infrastructure is different.
If Mr. Stone and the provincial government are worried about the tax burden being imposed on residents of the Lower Mainland, then the answer is clearly to fund transit projects the same way other infrastructure projects are funded. Singling out transit for a referendum implies that funding transit is somehow optional – something we could say no to.
If paying new taxes or fees is the issue, surely the people of Surrey should have been allowed to vote on whether they wanted to pay a toll every time they cross the Port Mann Bridge to go home. And if the plan is to toll the multibillion-dollar bridge that will replace the Massey Tunnel, then surely Lower Mainland residents should be asked how they feel about it. The same should be true for island residents when it comes to fuel surcharges and hikes to ferry fares. No thanks; don't think I want to pay for that.
But back to the town hall. I had other questions: "If the mayors decide on a vehicle levy, will the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) help collect the fees?" And, "Does the minister believe a business case has been made for a Broadway subway line?" Also, whether the minister himself had any ideas about how best to fund Lower Mainland transit. Those questions went unanswered. On whether he would abandon the referendum, it took Mr. Stone mere seconds to post the following answer: "No."
To be fair, the minister did respond to a few of my other questions. When I asked whether the province has been negotiating with the City of Surrey to finance a light rail line, Mr. Stone replied, "The Province is looking forward to working with Mayor-elect Hepner and the Mayors' Council." Not exactly an answer, but I know: 140 characters – it's limiting.
When it was all over, something called @TranBC directed me to a survey. TranBC turns out to be the hip, catchy name for the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure online.
In the preamble to the section on transit, there is this: "Investments in transit are guided by The Provincial Transit Plan (2008-2020), which has the goals of doubling transit ridership to support the development of healthy communities, and to decrease energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by supporting alternate choices to automobiles."
That plan can still be found online, and it begins with a message from then-premier Gordon Campbell: "The Provincial Transit Plan is British Columbia's new strategy for expanding fast, reliable, green transit. This plan will double transit ridership in British Columbia by 2020." It continues, "Our Transit Plan is a major element of our climate action efforts, helping achieve our greenhouse gas reduction goals by significantly increasing transit ridership, reducing automobile use, and providing a foundation of transportation infrastructure to support the development of healthier communities in the future."
And on page eight there's this: "$2.8-billion to build a new, 12 kilometre line from Broadway Station to [the] University of British Columbia by 2020, and $3.1-billion to double capacity on the existing Expo Line, including major improvements to stations starting in 2009 and a 6 kilometre extension in Surrey by 2020."
The plan relies on the provincial and federal governments for the lion's share of funding, along with significant contributions from TransLink and municipalities. In total it promises that more than $11-billion will be spent on transit before 2020.
And there's not a single word about a referendum.
Stephen Quinn is the host of On the Coast on CBC Radio One, 690 AM and 88.1 FM in Vancouver. @cbcstephenquinn